The AVIATR mission concept is an unmanned aerial vehicle that would fly over Titanís surface. Itís nominal one year mission would enable detailed high-resolution images of Titanís diverse landscapes for better comparison to Earthís geological processes. Selected regions could be imaged at resolutions near 30 cm/pixel, equivalent to current HiRise imaging of Mars. In addition, atmospheric sampling would allow a profile of Titanís thick lower atmosphere and how it relates to Earthís atmospheric processes and weather systems.

Further details of the AVIATR mission concept were presented at the Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference 2010 and at Titan Through Time 2010.See: Barnes et al. LPSC 41 (2010) Abstract 2551. ďAVIATR: Aerial Vehicle for In-situ and Airborne Titan Reconnaissance.ĒFreely available here: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2010/pdf/2551.pdf

Only thing that concerns me is the UAV mechanical deployment sequence (which seems complex, to say nothing of time-critical)

The deployment isn't too bad -- one joint on each wing unfolds, and that's it. And there's plenty of time to do it -- this isn't Mars, you know! 1/7th gravity, and 4 times the air density as Earth means we've got about 12 hours between entry and when we'd hit the ground. So not nearly as hair-raising as on Mars.

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